1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to shoes having sound generating devices either attached to the shoe or designed into the structure of the shoe. The present invention also relates to cap triggering mechanisms that are used to explode toy caps of the type used in cap guns.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Toy caps contain small amounts of explosive powder sealed within a plastic housing or in between layers of paper. As the cap is struck, the explosive powder explodes making a loud popping sound. In the prior art record, there is a wide variety of different mechanisms used to fire toy caps. Typically, the mechanism used to fire the cap is a cap gun. Cap guns typically have a hammer mechanism controlled by the trigger of the gun. When the trigger is squeezed, the hammer falls against a cap, thereby causing the cap to fire. The firing of the cap therefore gives the toy gun a loud sound effect that enhances the toy's play value.
Toy caps are fired in a plurality of mechanisms other than cap guns. For example, there are toy rockets that hold caps in their noses. The rockets are thrown through the air, wherein the cap explodes when the rocket's nose strikes the ground. The key to the popularity of toy caps and toys that use toy caps is that children enjoy making loud noises using caps. This is evidenced by the fact that many children fire caps just by hitting them with rocks or heating them with a magnifying glass.
Another way that children like to make noise is by stomping their feet on surfaces, such as hard floors, that produce noise. However, since an appropriate flooring surface is not always available, different types of shoes have been created in the prior art that produce noise regardless to the surface upon which they are placed. In many such shoes, the force of the shoe hitting the ground is transferred to a hammer that strikes a noise producing element within the structure of the shoe. Such shoes are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 1,943,222 to Landi, entitled MUSICAL TAP DANCING SHOE and U.S. Pat. No. 2,753,220 to Miles, entitled NOISE MAKING TOY DEVICE.
It is the intention of the present invention to introduce a cap firing mechanism into the structure of a shoe. As such, when a child jumps and lands on the ground, that energy can be used to fire a cap, thereby producing a loud sound. Such a mechanism would be novel to a child and would promote play that involved the physical activity of running and jumping.